Giff arrived back at Worthington House and was led to a good-sized parlor anchored by a large lady’s desk. His mother, Lady Worthington, and Alice were seated near the window. Outside, the Great Danes were playing with the older children.
The butler announced him. “Lord St. Albans, my lady.”
Alice glanced up. “Oh, good. We can go no further until we know if we are being married in church or not.”
He took a seat next to her on a small sofa. “If we want to have the ceremony in church, it can only be in ten days at nine in the morning.”
She took one of his hands between her smaller ones. “That is only two days earlier than we had planned.”
Lady Worthington poured him a cup of tea, and Alice added the milk and sugar. Her ladyship glanced at his mother then at him. “Very well. I shall write to Madam Lisette to notify her of the change. The only other decision is where to have the wedding breakfast.”
He and his mother had both thought the Cleveland House gardens would be perfect, but it would be much more difficult to keep track of the children. “Here.”
Mamma shot him a look, and he tilted his head to the window. Understanding dawned on her countenance. “I agree. It will be easier to have it here with the children.”
He thought Lady Worthington heaved a small sigh of relief, and Giff said, “There will be plenty of time for them to explore our gardens later.”
She glanced at a paper in her hand. “Number of guests. We generally invite family members and close friends of the bride and groom.”
“I would like my father to be there,” Mamma said. “I wrote to him as soon as Alice and Giff were betrothed.”
His mother probably didn’t know about the ship. “I asked for his ship to travel to Scotland after the wedding.”
“Wonderful.” Mamma smiled broadly. “He will no doubt sail down here.” She gave Lady Worthington a chagrinned look. “We will not know how many of my family will be onboard until they have arrived.”
“As long as you can house them, we will manage.” She glanced down at the list and back up. “Are there any customs your family would like to see that we do not have here in England?”
“There are so many. I have an idea of some we could do here.” His mother held up her hand and stared ticking them off. “White heather for the groom and in the bride’s bouquet, a sixpence in the bride’s shoe, a piper to lead them to the table, the loving cup with whisky, they’ll dance the first reel, and the sword dance at the end. The cake is usually a fruit cake. I had my cook start it already.”
Alice looked at him. “Piping?”
He grinned “Yes. If we were in Scotland, we’d be piped from the house to the kirk and to dinner.”
“You mean bag pipes?” Alice’s eyes were wider than he’d ever seen them. She’d obviously never heard of the tradition before.
His mother laughed. “Yes. Bag pipes. They don’t sound bad at all when played properly. Although, I do not know how easy it would be to find a good piper in Town.”
“We generally do not dance at our wedding breakfasts,” Grace said. “But there is a first time for everything, and the children will like it.”
“It seems as if we have finalized the plans,” Mamma said. “I will send my list of family and friends to you no later than tomorrow morning. My secretary is at your disposal if you need her.” She turned to Giff. “What are your plans?”
He looked at Alice. “We must speak with Simmons and his wife about the positions of butler and housekeeper.”
“Excellent,” his mother said. “What else?”
“I am taking my personal servants to see the heir’s wing. I hope to hear from the decorator and her husband soon. Her husband is an architect. And I want to be able to gather some maids and footmen from our housekeeper and butler here. Do you have anyone who would like to work for us?”
“I will speak with my housekeeper. She will not be at all happy about losing Simmons, but it is time for her to be responsible for her own house. What about a cook?”
“I have already spoken with our cook. He will find someone for us.” Alice rose. “Whose carriage shall we take?”
“Mine is outside.” Giff held out his arm. “Shall we?”
“In a few minutes. I must tell my servants to meet us there.”
Once that was done, he escorted Alice out while Mamma waited for her coach to be brought around. “What are you going to do tomorrow?”
Alice settled herself on to the bench. “Shopping. A great deal of shopping.”
“I will be happy to accompany you.” He picked up the ribbons.
“That will be fun. I do trust I will hear from the decorator soon.”
He did as well. The sooner the house was finished the better. Giff wondered if their bedchamber was in good-enough condition to make love to Alice. He needed to be with her.
He called for the Simmonses to join them in the library. He and Alice were seated behind an old walnut desk when they arrived. Giff indicated the chairs in front of the desk. “Please.” He wished there was tea, but this would have to do. “Her ladyship and I would like to offer you the positions of butler and housekeeper.”
The couple smiled at one another. “Thank you, my lord,” Simmons said. “We will be happy to accept.”
Alice folded her hands and placed them on the desk. “It occurred to me that it might be better if we had additional servants that already serve our families. I will ask the Worthington housekeeper if she has any maids who might like to come to us. Do you know any maids who would like to change houses?”
“Footmen too, my lady?” Simmons asked.
“Indeed.” Alice inclined her head.
Mrs. Simmons pursed her lips. “I do know a few of the younger maids who have learned their duties well but have no opportunity of advancement at the present. I would be happy to ask them.”
“There are one or two footmen as well,” Simmons added.
